You’ll Need a Ph.D. to Fully Appreciate These Popsicles

After three years in development, designer David Marx is debuting Kyl21, a vegan-friendly, alcohol-infused popsicle intended for adult partygoers. Photo: The Science Kitchen

Marx's icy invention is the result of a collaboration with university scientists, a three-star chef, and a manufacturer of industrial nitrogen machinery with the goal of completely reinventing the form, function, and flavor of freezer pops. Photo: The Science Kitchen

"Typical round ice cream shapes don't reflect my idea of the future," says Marx. In contrast, Kyl21 bars have a jewel-like appearance and resemble crystals seen under high levels of magnification. Photo: The Science Kitchen

Photo: The Science Kitchen

Photo: The Science Kitchen

The hard, folded edges of the pops have an unmistakably sci-fi appearance, but are also functional and create additional surface area, which allows for faster freezing. Photo: The Science Kitchen

Kyl21 got its arty name by combining "molekyl," the Norwegian spelling of molecule, and the age at which patrons need to be to enjoy one of the Science Lab's rum-infused pina colada bars or their vodka-based "swimming pool" flavored pops. Photo: The Science Kitchen

"In order to shape ice cream in such a unique and exact way, an ultra-fast production process had to be developed," says Marx. This involved creating new multi-part molds that could handle the tight tolerances that the designs demand, developing custom alloys with high levels of thermal conductivity, and creating a flash-freezing process for the liquid to prevent expansion. Photo: The Science Kitchen

Photo: David Marx

The ice cream treat of the future is here—just not widely distributed yet. Those who want to taste the chilly treat will need to trek to Berlin and attend a party held by the Science Kitchen, where the bars are produced a couple hundred at a time. Photo: The Science Kitchen

One winter night back in 1905, 11-year-old Frank Epperson accidentally left a cup of soda on his porch overnight and awoke the next morning to find a delicious frozen treat and the beginnings of the multibillion-dollar popsicle industry. Despite the auspicious start, ice-pop purveyors have since suffered from an epic case of brain freeze. The art form simply hasn’t advanced in the intervening century. Designer David Marx and his lab, the Science Kitchen, hope to change that with the invention of Kyl21, which they’ve dubbed “the world’s first molecular popsicle.”

They’ve dubbed it “the world’s first molecular popsicle.”

Putting the shaky scientific claim aside, Marx’s invention is the result of a three-year collaboration with university scientists, a Michelin three-star chef, and a manufacturer of industrial nitrogen machinery with the goal of completely reinventing the form, function, and flavor of freezer pops. “Typical round ice cream shapes don’t reflect my idea of the future,” says Marx. In contrast, Kyl21 bars have a jewel-like appearance and resemble crystals seen under high levels of magnification. Even the wooden stick gets the futuristic treatment with a laser-etched number denoting the flavor in a periodic table fashion while an asymmetrical chamfer provides a dash of spaceship style. The hard, folded edges of the pops have an unmistakably sci-fi appearance, but are also functional and create additional surface area which allows for faster freezing.

The faceted profiles and manufacturing process are tightly coupled. “In order to shape ice cream in such a unique and exact way, an ultra-fast production process had to be developed,” says Marx. This involved creating new multi-part molds that could handle the tight tolerances that the designs demand, developing custom alloys with high levels of thermal conductivity, and creating a flash freezing process for the liquid to prevent expansion. “Liquid nitrogen became my daily companion,” says Marx.

“Starting with the shapes, I wanted to show the world that new and other things are possible,” says Marx. Photo: The Science Kitchen

Kyl21 got its arty name by combining “Molekyl,” the Norwegian spelling of molecule, and the age at which patrons need to be to enjoy one of the Science Lab’s rum-infused pina colada bars or their vodka-based “swimming pool” flavored pops. Marx has also developed frozen yogurt options and a line of vegan flavors with sugars derived from grains that are intended for all ages. “Together with other avant-garde chefs, I developed a multitude of unconventional recipes, refined existing textures, created delicious vegan options and soon was creating the best vegan ice cream in the world,” he says.

The ice cream treat of the future is here—it’s just not widely distributed yet. Those who want to taste the treat will need to trek to Berlin and attend a party held by the Science Kitchen where the bars are produced a couple hundred at a time. Marx plans to run a crowdfunding campaign in 2014 to help bring the pops out of the lab and into the wider market. “Only then, this ice cream revolution could make its way onto the street,” says Marx—presumably in an ice cream truck playing Daft Punk.